New Works @ Night – Troy McLaughlin: I have a Dream – Feb 12, 2016

New Works @ Night

Troy McLaughlin: I Have a Dream

Friday, February 12, 8:00pm
The Annex, 823 Seymour St
Box office opens at 7:00pm

In celebration of Black History Month New Works is thrilled to welcome back to the stage audience favourite I Have a Dream. This original piece by Troy McLaughlin follows a dancer’s journey to freedom; it incorporates dance, live music and storytelling to look back and honour the growth of tap, jazz and Broadway styles in North America.

Troy McLaughlin will, without a doubt, enlighten and entertain. He will be joined on stage by musicians Carlos Jo Costa, John Howard, Wayne Stewart and Langston Raymond, singer Krystle Dos Santos and dancer Natalia McLaughlin. I Have a Dream premiered as part of New Works’ Dance Allsorts in 2014.

I Have a Dream is presented by New Works and held with gratitude on unceded Coast Salish Territory. New Works gratefully acknowledges the support of the Department of Canadian Heritage, Canada Council for the Arts, City of Vancouver, Province of British Columbia, British Columbia Arts Council, and our media sponsor: The Georgia Straight.

Troy McLaughlin

Troy McLaughlin is a native of Richmond, Virginia who now proudly lives in Vancouver. He holds a B.F.A. in Jazz Dance from The University of the Arts in Philadelphia, where he studied with Judith Jamison, tap great Lavaughn Robinson, and members of the Martha Graham Dance Company, New York City Ballet, and Jo Jo Smith’s Dance Factory. Troy has also choreographed for musicals, industrial shows, and dance companies worldwide. He has also taught at numerous universities, public schools, and dance studios. Highlights of his career include performing in Disney’s The Lion King, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Starlight Express, The Radio City Rockettes Show, The Siegfried and Roy Show, as Richard Pryor’s tap dancing conscience in Pryor Offences, amongst many others.

Carlos Joe Costa
Carlos Joe Costa is an American/ Canadian percussionist and flutist who has performed and recorded all genres of music for over forty years. He has worked with notable artists such as Carlos Santana, Taj Majal, Louie Belson, The Tripoli Steel Drum Band, Neal Schon (Journey), Elvin Bishop and many more. Carlos is currently recording and producing music here in Vancouver.

Krystle Dos Santos
Krystle Dos Santos recently seen at the Stanley Theatre in Dreamgirls has taken her experience from the Canadian College of Performing Arts, and transformed it into the beginnings of a career already full of achievements. Unveiling her talents to the public with her 2008 full length self-titled debut, Dos Santos was instantly recognized as a force by the Western Canadian Music Awards, winning the Urban Recording of the Year.  That same album charted for six weeks on CJSR FM88’s Urban chart and was top ten on 92.5 The X in Kamloops, BC.  One of the single’s from the album even appeared in an Episode of ABC’s Samantha Who?

But to simply classify Dos Santos as a recording artist would be neglecting one of the most intriguing aspects of her talents. Whether facing the crowd on her own or with her full ensemble of band-mates as she is more accustomed, Dos Santos uses a sultry tone and eccentric array of melodies to create an intimately magnetic connection with her audience.  She is able to further engage her audience by shifting seamlessly through genres, embodying her musical influences-Nina

Simone, Etta James, Alicia Keys-culminating into a powerful live experience that fuses jazz, soul, pop, funk and blues into an arena of styles and sounds that takes listeners from mid-20th century Harlem, right up to present day L.A.

John Howard
John is originally from the Chicago/Minneapolis area. After a 6 year stay in Seattle he moved to Vancouver in 1985 and is now a permanent resident. He has performed both R&B and jazz, winning Demo Listen Derby in 1998 with the Blues/Rock banc Small Mercies. Now playing acoustic bass/vocals and trumpet inclusively, he has focused his efforts on a soulful, bluesy style of jazz he calls Soul Jazz. His CD, featuring a quartet of that name, offers fourteen tracks of jazz classics and pop jazz styling’s. Influenced by Al Jarreau, Ramsey Lewis, The Jazz Crusaders and George Benson. John’s interpretations present danceable, listenable, enjoyable music. He can be seen live at various clubs and restaurants in the Vancouver area.

Natalia McLaughlin
It’s no wonder this young performer has an extensive list of credits, she began tap dancing in the kitchen alongside her Dad as soon as she could walk.  By age two she was in the Emmy Award winning documentary “A Place to Call Home” (NBC), and by age 5 she was in New York working on “Sesame Street” (Children’s Television Network). Vancouver Credits include The Wall –Young Pink (Live Stage), “Emily” (Gateway), “Annie” (Footlight) and five seasons with Theatre Under the Stars where she was awarded the Professional Conduct Award for her role as Nellie in Annie Get Your Gun. Natalia has trained with Radio City’s Rockettes, dances 22 hours/week with Shift Dance Academy and made it to the top of thousands in Disney’s Shake it Up! Make Your Mark” Dance Competition.  She recently returned from filming the ABC/Disney Christmas Parade in LA and looks forward to spending the spring as Assistant Choreographer for Shrek the Musical at Tuts.  Natalia started her own Video Production Company at age 14 which can be found at Marshmallowproductions.com.

Wayne Stewart
Wayne Stewart is a familiar face at Vancouver’s highest profile cultural events as a musician, actor, and emcee. His music is rooted in jazz and rhythm and blues. Born in London, England and raised in Vancouver and New York, he started playing guitar as a teenager inspired by rock, funk, and jazz. He took up piano at college and began playing in salsa, reggae and world music bands.

Wayne is a singer, composer, keyboardist, guitarist, and teacher and performs regularly around Vancouver, both solo and with a variety of groups including his band Curio and The Sanctuary All-Stars Big Band. Wayne also composes music for and accompanies silent films live. He scored and produced the 150th retrospective of the films of Georges Méliès, at the Vancouver FIlm Centre and scored several collections of films from the City of Vancouver Archives. He appears in Tim Burton’s film “Big Eyes” and plays piano on the soundtrack including a piece he cowrote for the film.

Wayne is also an actor who has appeared in commercials, television, films  and theatre shows. And as an emcee Wayne has hosted just about every major arts festival and cultural event in Vancouver.

Langston Raymond
Langston is a local musician based in Vancouver born in Kingston Jamaica.  His musical journey began in Bella Coola, where he picked up the trumpet in elementary school and played in the jazz and concert bands throughout high-school.  Upon graduation, Langston traveled across Europe with the Canadian National Honour Band which helped gel his passion for music.  After studying at the University of Michigan, Langston started focusing more on trumpet and guitar, studying with local and international musicians and attending the University of Stanford and Port Townsend summer jazz programs.

As a multi-instrumentalist, composer and arranger, Langston keeps busy with many local projects such as Billy Dixon’s Soul Train, Camaro 67′, and co-produced and recorded Doc Ramone and Corduroy Kid Present Dirty Bottom.

Images – top: David Cooper, bottom: Alan Beaton